Winter sports teams and other aficionados will still have their ice hockey rink following a decision by the city at a meeting recently.
“The goal is when the project’s done to redo one of the bathrooms, locker rooms, or things of that nature.” – Joseph DeMarco
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Nearly $2 million in renovations to the Richard Korpi Ice Rink on the campus of Bayonne High School will soon be underway and are scheduled for completion in the fall, following the awarding of a $1,954,500 project contract at a special City Council meeting on June 30.
The project will be handled by C.R. Construction Co., Inc., which was the lowest bidder to meet all the qualifications.
Three bids for the ice rink renovation were received on June 23, ranging from $1.967 million to $2.038 million, according to Business Administrator Joseph DeMarco.
The work will include a complete revamping of the building’s air conditioning system, as well as a complete demolition of the rink itself, according to DeMarco. Concrete and piping under the rink will need to be removed to make repairs.
The all-new piping system will be installed to allow the rink to run the coolant needed to make the ice. The system had fallen into disrepair, DeMarco explained, and the ice manufacturing was not uniform throughout the rink. All-new rubber matting for team areas will also be added.
Dismantled mechanical pieces will be put to use elsewhere in the city.
“We’ll save the dashboard items to get them repurposed and used at another park,” DeMarco said.
Maintenance costs will be decreased significantly, DeMarco said. The Bayonne Board of Education, which previously oversaw the rink, spent more than $200,000 on maintenance in the last two years.
The upgrades will include a separate dehumidifier system, which will not only solve the problem of “fog” over the ice, but will also be an air-cooled, rather water-cooled, system.
Many maintenance issues will likely be avoided, he said, because “air doesn’t leak.”
C.R. Construction was awarded the contract because it could meet the city’s requirement for the job minus a couple of “deletion items,” parts of the project that could be left off if they were deemed unnecessary or their costs would be too prohibitive, according to DeMarco.
One of those deletions was the unnecessary removal of the old humidifier units in the ceiling which would have cost between $15,000 and $20,000 to remove.
The money saved could be earmarked for other upgrades in the arena.
“The goal is when the project’s done to redo one of the bathrooms, locker rooms, or things of that nature,” DeMarco said.
The city bonded $2.1 million for the project to have a cushion to cover unforeseen costs.
DeMarco said the work on the rink would not be affected by the city’s recent labor agreement because it does not reach the $5 million plateau set forth in that pact. He said that the city pays the “prevailing” labor wage on projects.
Recreation is key
Mayor James Davis has made improving the city’s recreational opportunities one of the main goals of his administration. He held a recreation summit to elicit public comments and ideas at Bayonne High School last year.
The ice rink renovation will not only benefit school and club teams, but also community groups and residents.
City helping district
The award is part of the “interlocal” agreement that the Bayonne Board of Education and the city have entered into.
The city took over the bonding for the project because it has the mechanism to finance the project, Davis said earlier in the year.
Chief Financial Officer Terrence Malloy said there was no public comment on the ice rink contract at the meeting.
Joseph Passantino may be reached at JoePass@hudsonreporter.com.To comment on this story online visit www.hudsonreporter.com.